Well, this is nice. I’m not being sarcastic. Having spent last night witnessing the current iteration of Swans laying sonic waste to Leeds University over the course of a monumental two-and-a-half-hour set, my ears and my mind are in need of some respite.
With ‘Shadowlands’, Minnesota-based Romantica offer a set of gentle, melody-centric country-orientated songs. Ben Kyle’s songwriting style is honest and homely, the delivery intimate. Above all, the spirit which emanates from ‘Shadowlands’ is one of sincerity and authenticity. Recorded in a barn repurposed as a studio, the album oozed heartache and longing and reflection on pain and loss and failure – but it’s countered by a warmth of spirit, a reserved optimism and deep-seated sense of humanity.
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And it’s not all downbeat and downtempo: Gram Parsons tribute ‘Give Your Heart a Shelter’ is a vibrant honky-tonk piano hoedown. What it makes for is a balanced collection of songs where the shadows are contrasted by light.
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